


Symphony

by aj_linguistik



Category: Sword Art Online (Anime & Manga), ソードアート・オンライン - 川原礫 | Sword Art Online - Kawahara Reki
Genre: 2k Words for 2k Kudos, Blushing, Coffee Shops, Fanfic Request, First Dates, M/M, One Shot, Stargazing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-01
Updated: 2019-09-01
Packaged: 2020-10-05 03:21:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,246
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20482019
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aj_linguistik/pseuds/aj_linguistik
Summary: A request from my tumblr 2k Words for 2k Kudos.He finally did it. He asked Eugeo out on a date. And now, he's nervous. Will his date go well or will it all come crashing down?





	Symphony

**Author's Note:**

  * For [HisuiNeko](https://archiveofourown.org/users/HisuiNeko/gifts).

> A/N: This prompt was three words for inspiration and it reminded me of when my sister and I used to give each other three-word inspiration prompts for creative warm-ups. <3 Those were the days. Anyways, this was cute to write! I hope you all enjoy!

The busy street emitted a symphony of sights, sounds, and smells—enough so that the senses dizzied, and mind went a little numb from it all, but not so much that it felt completely overwhelming on its own. Signs flickered on one shop after another, signaling passersby that evening crept closer and closer. Cars zipped past, a few blaring their horns aggressively at other drivers, a few blasting music choices of all flavors, and some nearly silent until the driver hit the brakes, producing a high-pitched squeal. Various food scents wafted along the sidewalk, enticing the hungry citizens inside.

And here I stood, awkwardly leaning against the wall of a coffee shop, with a bouquet of flowers in hand. I counted the cars going by according to color. So far, three green, nine white, one deep purple, and about twelve blue. Oh, and a yellow one. I stole a glance at my watch and drew in a deep breath. I’d gotten out of class early to stop and buy the flowers, and in my rush, I’d ended up at the coffee shop fifteen minutes early.

The minutes dragged on as I waited. A week prior, I finally mustered up the courage to ask my crush on a date. His emerald green eyes lit up when I’d asked him out. My heart raced as he said he’d be delighted to go out with me. So, I put on my best semi-casual-yet-comfortable outfit and planned a date out. First, we’d have coffee here. Afterwards, if he was up to it, I had a special spot where I wanted to sit and stargaze with him. I didn’t know if he liked that sort of thing, but I had to work up the courage to ask him.

My mouth watered as my nose was assaulted with the smells of food around me. I heard my stomach start to complain about being empty. I sincerely hoped that it wasn’t making this kind of racket when Eugeo showed up. I checked my watch again. Just a few more minutes until he arrived. I ran my fingers through my hair, smoothed out the lines of my top, and readjusted my grip on the bouquet of blue roses I’d picked out for him.

“Now that I think about it, what is he supposed to do with a bunch of flowers for a whole date?” I mumbled.

My heart sank a little. What was intended to be a romantic gesture quickly melted into a worry. Flowers would need water. I had to think fast. I slipped into the coffee shop. Behind the counter, to my good fortune, was a good friend of mine. I leaned over to her, since she didn’t seem particularly busy.

“Pssst. Argo.”

“Oh, hey, Kii-boy!” she said, flashing me a grin. “What can I do for ya?”

I held up the bouquet.

“Would it…be possible to set these up on a table in a vase or something with some water?” I asked.

It was a silly question. What kind of a coffee shop just had vases lying around? But Argo didn’t seem too bothered by it. She gave me a wink and held out her hand.

“I’ll get you a nice seat, on the house,” she said. “Oh, but the vase’ll cost ya!”

I rolled my eyes and handed her the bouquet.

“Sure thing, just don’t tell him,” I said.

“I wish ya the best of luck,” she said. “I’ll put you two in the window seat. Since you’re paying for the vase, he can just take it if he wants.”

I pressed my hands together in thanks and gave her a hasty bow before I dashed back outside to meet Eugeo. A small part of me panicked, since I’d spent a little while inside of the shop, but to my relief, he wasn’t standing outside looking for me when I resumed my totally composed standing position against the window. I glanced down the sidewalk, curious. I saw him turn the corner a few blocks down and waved. He waved back.

It took him just a few minutes to walk over. I didn’t mind the wait. It gave me a minute to steady my racing heart. My first date with Eugeo—I could not let this turn into a giant mess. I drew in a breath and let it out slowly through my lips, enjoying the fresh, early-autumn air flowing through my lungs. I straightened myself up and got off of the window to greet my date.

“Sorry I’m late,” he said. “I had to run an errand for my brother, and it took a little longer than anticipated.”

“Oh, that’s fine,” I said, waving my hands dismissively. “I wasn’t waiting here all that long.”

_Wow, what a bold lie,_ I thought to myself.

Eugeo didn’t seem to notice, though. He smiled at me, appearing to be relieved that he hadn’t caused me any stress. He glanced up at the sign over the coffee shop and tilted his head to the side.

“I’ve never been here before,” he noted.

I perked up.

“Oh? It’s my favorite little place to grab coffee,” I said. “Or tea. They have good tea, too. Sometimes I grab a breakfast on my way to class. The staff is really friendly.”

I opened the door for him. He blushed a little, likely not expecting the gesture. He dipped his head at me and entered the shop. I followed behind him and guided him over to the table where Argo had expertly displayed the flowers. His eyes lit up just like they had when I’d asked him out. He gently caressed one of the roses.

“These are my favorite,” he said.

“W-well, they’re for _you_,” I said, trying to make sure he understood that they weren’t just randomly placed on the table.

I could practically hear Argo snickering behind me, even though she probably was in the back, fixing drink orders. Eugeo looked up at me, surprised. I raised my eyebrows.

“You placed these here?” he asked.

No sense in lying to him.

“Well, no, but I got the staff to arrange them here for you…” I said, trailing off.

That didn’t sound nearly as impressive. I could feel the heat of my embarrassment in my face. I nervously looked across the table at Eugeo. He still smiled just as brightly as before. I wondered why. When he noticed me looking, he closed his eyes.

“I didn’t know you had a sweet side, Kirito,” he said, his tone teasing.

“I-I…well…I…uh…”

Eugeo laughed.

“Thank you,” he said, reaching over to grab one of my hands.

Suddenly the embarrassment wasn’t the reason I was blushing. Our hands were touching. I was only saved by Argo slinking over to take our orders. Eugeo, who’d already expressed he’d never had anything here before, asked me what my favorite drinks and pastries were. I gave him the run-down. Argo was quite impressed by my reviews of their products. In the end, I went for a strong iced coffee and Eugeo ordered a caramel macchiato. We both ended up getting a fruit-filled pastry as well.

It didn’t take too long for Argo to return with our orders. The traffic in the coffee shop was rather low today; it was normally like this at dusk on a Thursday. That was why I’d picked today for a date. It was slow enough that our orders wouldn’t have us waiting an uncomfortable amount of time and the noise level inside of the shop was low enough that we could hear each other speak.

“I’m curious to know,” Eugeo asked. “What made you suddenly choose to ask me out?”

I blinked over at him.

“What do you mean?” I asked, stifling a laugh.

Eugeo tilted his head to the side and smiled.

“Everyone’s known you’ve had a crush on me for forever,” he said, once again employing a teasing tone. “I was just curious why now you decided to finally act on it.”

“E-everyone?” I stammered.

He nodded. I drew in a breath.

“I guess…I guess I just realized that if I never asked, I’d never know,” I said. “But hold up, if you knew the whole time, why didn’t you just ask me?”

It suddenly occurred to me that he might only have said yes because he was being polite. That was how Eugeo always was—polite. My heart pounded in my chest at the thought of this just being a formality. I held my breath. Eugeo’s cheeks tinged a little pink. I prepared myself for the absolute worst.

“This is going to sound silly,” he said.

I bit into my lip.

“Despite it being so obvious, I still wasn’t sure you actually _wanted_ to date,” he said.

My expectations were torn asunder. He’d delivered an answer that I hadn’t expected. Eugeo started to twiddle with his straw. He took a sip of his coffee and glanced down to the side. The pinkness of his cheeks turned into a darker shade.

“The truth is, I regret not having asked _you_ out first,” he admitted.

My senses, which had been taking everything around me in before, suddenly shut off completely aside from the feeling of my heart pounding in my ribs. I thought they might break. Eugeo liked me back? This was a better outcome than I could have dreamed of. I’d come in expecting to try this out and take it slow to see if he’d be interested in dating more. Worry had made me think this was just a formality. But now…

“I…I…” Eugeo stammered.

He stood up and then curled his hands up into fists.

“I want you to go out with me, Kirito!”

My heart leapt into my mouth, burst, and then evaporated like steam. I had to be redder than him. A few other patrons turned their heads, curiously waiting for my answer. I swallowed. The spotlight was on me, then. I slowly picked myself up out of the chair. Eugeo tensed up. I walked over to him and awkwardly put my hand out to him. He hesitated for a moment, but then slipped his fingers into mine.

His palms were warm and sweaty. Mine were no different. The both of us were so worked up over this we probably looked like a pair of idiots. I scrunched my shoulders up a little. He went to remove his hand. I squeezed it tighter.

“Eugeo…” I said.

“Yes?”

The response sounded nervous, even though it was clear. Now was a good time to extend my second invitation—the surprise one. I lifted my chin and met his eyes. He waited, patiently but expectantly, for me to say what I wanted to say.

“Would you like to stargaze with me tonight?” I asked.

In that moment, his eyes resembled stars themselves.

“I have a special location picked out…and packed a few blankets in the bag on my bike…” I said. “It’s not too far outside of the city.”

He returned the hand squeeze.

“I’d love that,” he said.

To my surprise, he wrapped his arms around me in a gentle hug. I was too dumbfounded to react in the moment. From across the room, Argo mimed for me to hug him back. I slipped my arms around him and gave him a firmer embrace. Argo gave me a thumb’s up and mouthed for me to have good luck.

* * *

In stark contrast with the busy street where we’d had our coffee, the hilltop away from the city limits of Tokyo was completely quiet aside from the pleasant chirping of crickets. We spread out our blankets on the grass and laid down side-by-side to stare up at the starry expanse above. Without the light pollution from the city, the sky was clear and filled with dazzling white lights.

Eugeo inched a little closer to me.

“It’s a bit chilly, don’t you think?” he said.

“Should I get more blankets?” I asked.

He shook his head and slipped himself against me, cuddling up to me as if we’d been together for quite a while. My heart started skipping. He started chuckling. I didn’t see what was so funny.

“If you keep getting embarrassed, I’ll never need to wear a jacket again,” he said. “You’re like a little heater.”

I let out an awkward laugh.

“Are you sure it’s okay to cuddle on a first date?” I asked.

He sighed.

“There’s no rules, are there?” he said. “If you don’t want to, I’ll grab another blanket and mind my distance.”

My brain started screaming at once. He couldn’t do that! This was nice! I wanted him to stay right where he was. I’d rather let the flustered feeling die down as I got used to him being so close than to push back this lucky development to a few dates later.

“This…this is nice,” I said. “I like this. I think I forgot another blanket anyways.”

Eugeo laughed. It sounded like music to my ears. Another symphony. The sound of his breathing, and of his laughter, mottled with the background instrumental of crickets and frogs in the night. The scent of his cologne, the remnants of coffee on his breath, and the crisp night air. His smile, a vision of brilliant light that complemented the twinkling stars above. I let go of my tension and turned to cuddle up against him as well.

_What a beautiful symphony_, I thought to myself.


End file.
